The purpose of social networks seems to be socializing, casually encountering people and dropping by their page. etc etc
So when this post showed up on the classroom 2.0 ning, I got frustrated.
I posted this response:
I have been watching this discussion via my RSS feed (which is tough to do).
You say you need my voice to help come up with an answer, yet most of what I see is opinionated statement, not discussion-provoking questions.
You are trying to encourage me to respond by nearly berating me for doing more reading than writing. I’ve heard that in order to learn one must read copious amounts, and so I have been doing so…
Don’t fuss at me for reading, reading is not akin to lurking. If you really want my opinion, ask me. Post thought-provoking posts and ask questions that will make me think and offer me the chance to offer my opinion.
Just noteworthy that your format is not conducive to anything other than a defensive response, which I imagine is not what you intended…
Chris
Isn’t lurking really just reading? I get so much benefit from reading blogs I find it rarely appropriate to comment. I try to avoid the temptation for the blogosphere to be an echo chamber for folks who share the same ideologies, so unless I have something constructive to say, I don’t say much.
Lurking=reading, and reading is beneficial. I don’t write to the authors of books I read, but that’s old school and not terribly “deuce”, is it?
I don’t like the term lurking. I mean do you write a letter to a magazine or newspaper every time you read an issue? Sometimes I comment but most time not. That is a the way of the world. To expect everyone to participate in a dialogue all the time is unrealistic.
Chris,
I agree that reading blogs is “beneficial”. I also think that commenting for the sake of commenting and being a more active member, is not beneficial. Simply commenting that you agree with what was written is not, in my humble opinion, adding to the discussion.
Peripheral members of a community may not take on an active role by commenting, but they may very well be sharing and discussing ideas that they read about on a blog with their colleagues at work or elsewhere.
Chris,
Thank you for your post–it makes me feel so much better! I am such a lurker/reader. I read A LOT, and I talk about the things I read A LOT (person to person), but very rarely comment. There are times I feel very guilty about this…I’ve even dropped online courses because of it! Not because I’m not learning, but because I feel guilty that I’m not sharing. There are those out there that push comments and contributions to the point of making it stressful to participate in something. Sometimes I just don’t have anything to add. But, that doesn’t mean I’m not talking about what I’m learning in the “real” world…or sharing the things I learn. I’m just slow to form opinions…I like to “chew” on things awhile before really responding in writing. And “fussing” at me because I’m not responding–that makes me just want to walk away from the discussion altogether.
Tina